Resolution demanding results in disputed Venezuela election fails to advance as 11 countries abstain

The Organization of American States (OAS) on Wednesday failed to secure the necessary votes to pass a resolution that demanded Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro release the official vote count in the country's recent presidential election.

Seventeen countries voted in favor of the resolution, but 11 countries abstained and five were absent. No countries voted directly against the measure, but it needed 18 votes to pass, according to NTN24.

Venezuela's National Electoral Council declared Maduro the winner of the election on Monday, with 51% of the vote, which has prompted protests and outcry in the South American country. The results also prompted the OAS to hold an emergency meeting in Washington, D.C., where the vote took place.

OAS Chair Ambassador Sir Ronald Sanders said that the vote came down to one sentence in the resolution, and that the rest had consensus. However, it is not clear what sentence in the resolution posed the problem or why.

"I regret that we have allowed one sentence to prevent us from having a document with full consensus," Sanders said, per the outlet.

The White House has also put pressure on Maduro and the Venezuelan government to produce valid evidence that the leader won a third six-year term in office. 

“Our patience, and that of the international community, is running out, running out. I’m waiting for the Venezuelan electoral [authority] to come clean and release the full detailed data on this election so that everyone can see the results,” National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said at a briefing. 

Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Grenada, Honduras, Saint Lucia, The Bahamas, Barbados, the nation of Antigua and Barbuda, and Saint Kitts and Nevis abstained from the vote.

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.